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Sales were down at the automaker's Chevrolet, Cadillac and Buick
brands.
GM stock fell 1.8 percent to $33.02 in premarket trading.
GM posted significant declines for passenger car models as
American consumers continued to abandon those models in favor of
larger, more comfortable vehicles. But the No. 1 U.S. automaker
reported drops for some of those more popular larger vehicles.
Sales fell for the Chevrolet Suburban, the Cadillac Escalade and
the GMC Yukon, all popular large SUVs that produce high margins.
GM reported a small decline for its Silverado pickup truck in
the fourth quarter as it transitioned to a new, revamped model.
"We are very bullish on pickups heading into 2019," Kurt McNeil,
GM's U.S. vice president for sales operations said in a
statement. "We feel confident heading into 2019 because we have
more major truck and crossover launches coming during the year
and the U.S. economy is strong."
After a long bull run, U.S. new vehicle sales are expected to
drop in 2019.
Rising interest rates are seen weighing on sales as they could
translate into higher monthly car payments for consumers. Recent
stock market turmoil and uncertainty over the health of the U.S.
economy could also add to consumer caution in the short term.
While passenger car sales have fallen off rapidly, pickup
profitable trucks and SUVs are expected to remain relatively
robust despite an overall decline in sales.
GM expects industrywide U.S. new vehicle sales to hit 17.3
million units for 2018, a slight increase versus 2017.
Other major automakers including rival Ford Motor Co <F.N> are
due to report monthly auto sales figures on Thursday.
(Reporting by Nick Carey; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
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